This little gem I happened to pick up at random at my local CD shop. The Jazzhole is the debut album by acid-jazz superstars Jazzhole. This album blends together the wonderful worlds of jazz, funk, and hip hop to create a ultrasonically smooth concoction of sound. With a plethora of artists on this album, including the three key/main members of Marlon Saunders, Warren Rosenstein & John Pondel (these three have stayed with the group since their inception). This album starts off really strong, with ultra-jazzy hits like “Forward Motion (feat. Ahmed Best),” “Bumaush the Jazzhole (feat. Ronnie Rush),” and “Gotta B Everything (feat. Michelle Lewis).” As the album continues on, it doesn’t get worse, however, the sound completely changes from a smooth jazz, to a quixotic funk. The funkiness later subsides, and blends with an upbeat reggae type sound. I personally love the first half of the album, and am slightly partial to the second half. The whole sound of the album overall is very unique and definitely requires an acquired taste. Initially, they reminded me something like Digable Planets, but that changed as the mood and sound of the album progressed throughout the duration of the album. But, for all you acid jazz lovers and jazzy-hip hop heads, this album is definitely one you have got to check out.
8/10
